He said the deployment will be Britain’s first contribution to a permanent NATO naval force since 2010.

In 2014, NATO ended all practical cooperation with Russia over the ensuing crisis in Ukraine and since then has been expanding its presence in Poland and the Baltic nations in order to deter what it calls Russian threat.

The United States and its European allies accuse Moscow of destabilizing Ukraine and have imposed a number of sanctions against Russian and pro-Russia figures. Moscow, however, rejects having a hand in the Ukrainian crisis.

Russia has repeatedly slammed NATO’s military buildup near its borders, saying such a move poses a threat to both regional and international peace.

Ukraine’s mainly Russian-speaking Donbass has been severely affected by fighting between the country’s army and the pro-Russians since April 2014, when Kiev launched a military crackdown there in an attempt to quell regional protests. More than 9,000 people have been killed in the conflict.